Episode 215: Jean Guerrero on Community, Journalism in the Age of Trump, and Her Stephen Miller Biography ‘Hatemonger’

Jean Guerrero

By Brendan O’Meara

Jean Guerrero (@jeanguerre) makes her return to the podcast to talk about her new book Hatemonger: Stephen Miller, Donald Trump, and the White Nationalist Agenda (William Morrow, 2020).

She told me:

It’s a whole new world. I remember I was reporting for the Stephen Miller book, I went to Trump’s first reelection rally in Orlando. And it was the first time that I had ever been in a place where I felt reluctant and kind of scared to tell people that I was a journalist. I wasn’t there undercover. I was there to interview people. It made me nervous to be walking around with my notebook out because there were so many chants against journalists.

In this episode we talk about networking as community, or community as networking, blasting through this book in six months, and getting to the bottom of Stephen Miller (Hint: There isn’t much depth.).

Jean was also on the show about two years ago, so you’ll want to check that out.

Keep the conversation going on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook @CNFPod. Easy as pie. Mmmmm, pie.

Be sure you’re subscribed to the show wherever you get your pods and also subscribe to my monthly newsletter: book recommendations, articles, podcast news, you name it! Subscribers are automatically entered into book drawings. Pretty cool, right? There’s sign up forms there, there, there, and there.

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Episode 214: Seyward Darby’s Deep Dive into the ‘Sisters of Hate’

Seyward (Say-Word) Darby

By Brendan O’Meara

Seyward Darby is here to talk about her book Sisters in Hate: American Women on the Front Lines of White Nationalism.

It’s a great book, tightly told.

Seyward talks about how editing The Atavist Magazine has made her a better writer, how she was able to write this book while holding down her full-time job, and three core tenets of why people get drawn into the vitriole of white nationalism.

Email the show with any questions you might want answered or to say hello.

Consider leaving a kind review on Apple Podcasts.

And, please, enjoy the show.

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Episode 213: Tornados, BDSM Potlucks? Welcome to Tomboyland with Melissa Faliveno

Melissa Faliveno. Photo Credit: Maggie Walsh

By Brendan O’Meara

Stepping up to the plate this week is Melissa Faliveno (@melissafaliveno), author of Tomboyland, a collection of essays published by Topple Books.

It’s a love letter to her midwest roots and the topics are so wide ranging, yet have this connective tissue that once you’re in the thick of reading it you like “How the fuck did she do this?”

Seriously.

In this episode we talk about how she finds the groove, her workspace, the books she keeps on her desk, softball, BDSM, and F5 tornados.

Keep the conversation going on social media @CNFPod across them all. If you feeling kind, link up to the show and consider leaving a review on Apple Podcasts. A complimentary editing consult awaits you: Just screenshot your review, email it to the show, and I’ll reach back out.

You’ll also want to subscribe to my monthly newsletter that goes on the first of the month. Book recommendations, cool articles, podcasts, and what you might have missed from the world of this podcast. First of the month. No spam. Can’t beat it.

Melissa’s work has appeared in Bitch magazine, the Millions, Prairie Schooner, Isthmus, DIAGRAM, Midwestern Gothic, and Green Mountains Review. She’s a Best American Essays notable writer as well.

Please enjoy this conversation, friend.

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Episode 212: Kevin Guilfoile on Uncovering the Chaos and ‘A Drive into the Gap’

Kevin Guilfoile

By Brendan O’Meara

Kevin Guilfoile (@kevinguilfoile) is the author of the memoir A Drive into the Gap (Field Notes, 2012).

It’s a wonderful story about memory, fathers and sons, and the hunt for the identity of Roberto Clemente’s bat, the one that struck his 3,000th and final hit.

Kevin shares stories about his time growing up in Cooperstown, home of the baseball Hall of Fame and dealing with a young Barry Bonds while an intern for the Pittsburgh Pirates.

He’s written two novels and one movie and I loved it when he said, “You become a writer by writing.”

It’s the same sentiment that Austin Kleon espouses: In order to be the noun, you have to do the verb.

Keep the conversation going on on social media @CNFPod and consider leaving a kind a review on Apple Podcasts.

And sign up for my monthly newsletter where I raffle off books, share reading recommendations, writing tips, and what you might have missed from the world of the podcast.

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Episode 211: What to Do When You Hate the Work with Rose Andersen

Rose Andersen is the author of The Heart and Other Monsters.

This episode is sponsored by Scrivener, by writers for writers.

“Great, so you’re at the point in the writing process where you hate all your work. We all do that.” — Rose Andersen (@roseandersen)

By Brendan O’Meara

Rose Andersen is the author of The Heart and Other Monsters (Bloomsbury, 2020) and we jam about that, the writing process, deadlines, music, groove, and addiction.

It’s one of the best books I’ve read this year, so you should listen here and then consider buying it for the memoir/true crime lover in your circle of CNFers.

And I’m bringing back the review-for-coaching deal. If you leave a review on Apple Podcasts, I will give you an hour of my editing/coaching time, a $50 value, so act fast!

Leave a review, wait for it to post, screenshot it, and email it to me creativenonfictionpodcast at gmail dot com. Then I’ll reach out. Keep the work to 2,000 words or fewer.

Also, if you’re feeling kind, link up to the show on social media, tagging the show @CNFPod so I can give you the props and elbow bumps you deserve!

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Episode 210: Stephanie Gorton Looks to the Past with ‘Citizen Reporters’

Stephanie Gorton (Photo credit Rachel Hulin)

This episode is sponsored by Scrivener, by writers for writers.

Want the transcript to this episode?! PayPal brendan at brendan omeara dot com $5 and I’ll send you the PDF!

“But there was a sense that I had let down my younger self and ought to find a way to make writing at least in some way, a part of my part of my life.” — Stephanie Gorton.

By Brendan O’Meara

Stephanie Gorton (@sdgortonwords) is the author of Citizen Reporters: S.S. McClure, Ida Tarbell, and the Magazine that Rewrote America. It’s a ripping-good yarn.

In this conversation we talk about her Page Turner piece for New Yorker dot com about an H.P. Lovecraft conference in Providence, her home city. We riff on what it was like for her to go from publishing to writing. We talk about the social media and why anyone with platform would trust a journalist with their stories. It’s good, clean fun.

Keep the conversation going on social media by linking up the show and tagging it @CNFPod.

This podcast was sponsored in part by Scrivener, made by writers for writers! It’s also sponsored by Casualty of Words, a writing podcast for people in a hurry.

Be sure you’re subscribed to the podcast wherever you get your podcasts and subscribe to my monthly newsletter for book recommendations, writing tips, and what you might’ve missed from the world of the podcast. You’re also entered to win books. What’s not to like?! Sign up below.

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Episode 209: The Evolution of Beth Roars

Beth Compson Bradford
View on Zencastr

This episode is sponsored by Scrivener, by writers for writers.

Beth Compson Bradford, better known as Beth Roars, comes on the podcast because she embodies the new way creatives need to be creative to make a living.

She’s a vocal coach and performer, but she’s best know for her YouTube channel where she reacts to various vocal performances. Like this one:

Be sure to keep the conversation going on Instagram, all @creativenonfictionpodcast.

Things Beth and I talk about:

  • Self-doubt
  • Taking tiny steps
  • Giving up on her dreams

Subscribing to my monthly newsletter gets you reading recommendations, podcast news, and enters you into raffles for free books. Sign up below, friend.

Episode 208: From Floundering to Freelance Superstar with Wudan Yan

Wudan Yan

This episode is sponsored by Scrivener, by writers for writers.

“That was always my understanding that if you want to be a freelance journalist, you’re probably going to have to do a lot of things that you don’t want to do, so it creates time, space, and resources for you to dig into the things that you want to do.” — Wudan Yan

By Brendan O’Meara

You know when an episode is especially juicy? Of course you do! and this is one of them.

Wudan Yan is a freelance superstar. You can find her on Twitter (an amazing follow) @wudanyan. She’s one of those wicked smaht people who breaks things down and makes things supah approachable and, damn, maybe you can make a go of it, too.

She’s a Seattle-based journalist and co-host of The Writer’s Co-op, a business podcast for writers. Wudan got internet famous for a blog post she wrote about chasing late fees for the $5,000 she was owed. Unfortunately this is the ugly side of freelancing, chasing late payments like Pac-Man on a ghost.

Instead of me linking up to so much of her incredible work, just go here and dig in. Get some coffee. Pour in some delicious vegan creamer into your coffee (I prefer Oatly’s barista creamer) and settle in for some world-class journalism, bruh.

Be sure you’re subscribed to the show wherever you get your podcasts and consider leaving a nice review on Apple Podcasts. They help.

Keep the conversation going on social media, @CNFPod across Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

Sign up for that newsletter, too. Book raffles, reading recommendations, writing tips, and what you might have missed from the world of the podcast. First of the month. No spam. Can’t beat it.

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Episode 207: Every Story is a Workshop with Roy Peter Clark

Roy Peter Clark

This episode is sponsored by Scrivener, created by writers for writers.

By Brendan O’Meara

In this conversation, Roy Peter Clark, author of Murder Your Darlings: And Other Gentle Writing Advice from Aristotle to Zinsser (Little, Brown), he says, “Every story is a workshop.”

What a great way to approach reading and writing. I love it.

Roy is the author of several books on writing including Writing Tools, The Glamour of Grammar, Writing Short, Help! for Writers, and The Art of X-Ray Reading.

In this episode we talk about a deep dive he took on a 19-year-old college freshman’s brilliant story of a man washing the stain of blood from the sidewalk after a killing.

There’s lots of great stuff I know you’ll dig in this episode, so I’ll leave you to it.

Be sure to keep the conversation going on Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook, @CNFPod.

If you dig the show, consider leaving a nice review on Apple Podcasts. I make it a point to review shows I like, so I’m not just asking for reviews and not dishing it out!

Also subscribe to my monthly newsletter to be entered in book raffles, and to receive reading recommendations, and podcast news.

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Episode 206: Neal Bascomb on Deep Research, Failed Novels, and Locking into Nonfiction

Neal Bascomb

By Brendan O’Meara

Hey there, CNFers! How are you? You hanging in there? That’s good. Keep wearing a mask.

For Episode 206, I welcome Neal Bascomb, author of Faster: How a Jewish Driver, an American Heiress, and a Legendary Car Beat Hitler’s Best (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2020). It’s a great read. I really loved the characters.

In this episode we also talk about his soiree in novel writing and how writing four failed novels put him on the path he’s on now. We talk about his approach to research and how he organizes is. Lots of great stuff here.

I hope ya dig.

As always, be sure to subscribe to the show wherever you get your podcasts and if you’re feeling kind, leave a nice review on Apple Podcasts.

Keep the conversation going on social media by pinging the show @CNFPod on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. And if this show means anything to you and your circle of CNFers, please share it. This only spreads hand to hand.

Books by Neal Bascomb

The Racecars
The Escape Artists
The Winter Fortress
The Perfect Mile
Hunting Eichman
Red Mutiny
The New Cool
Higher

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